Hala Abdel Wahab
Title: Comparative Analysis of Two Reliable Systems for Assessing Gray Mold in Strawberry Fruits
Biography
Biography: Hala Abdel Wahab
Abstract
Gray Mold is a serious constraint in strawberry production worldwide. Early detection of infected strawberry fruits, before appearance of symptoms, allow timely treatment. Two useful alternative systems, molecular analysis and remote sensing, have been used for monitoring large plant samples at a single time point, as the early diagnosis is otherwise not possible by visual observation alone. The current study demonstrated that both techniques: the real time PCR and spectroradiometer are reliable techniques for early diagnosis of gray mold in strawberry fruits under laboratory condition. However, the molecular method is very expensive for a routine use. Therefore, the long-term goal of this research is to develop a fast screening technique that can accurately detect and quantify Botrytis infections. The two comparative detection tests were evaluated to identify the Botrytis-infected samples from different infection levels of strawberry fruits. We found that v/near, swir1 and swir2 are the range significant to differentiate between healthy and infected strawberry fruits. Results of this study could suggest potential usage of laboratory remote sensing in monitoring gray mold in symptomless infected fruits. Thus it will be useful for assessing the quiescent infection before export.